I repair desktops and laptops. I'm not just talking about re-installing Windows. I'm talking about taking a Weller 40P with a customized split tip and replacing blown capacitors, power adapter ports, etc. I'm the guy the other technicians call to fix the stuff they can't or won't. There was this one stretch of repairing a local school system's aging Dell Optiplex GX270's when Dell stopped replacing motherboards suffering from the capacitor plague... I almost swore off using my soldering iron after that... almost.

I'm a hardware geek, as anyone who reads the majority of my answers will pick up on. I've got more running computers in my home than I should (heat generation, electricity usage, promoted laziness for all the occupants, etc). Essentially, there's no computer in the bathroom (yet), but every other room has at least one that is used daily. No, it's not that I go out and buy BUY BUY ... I recycle machines for customers that upgrade, and I'm always on the lookout for something to put back into service... and I have a use for all of them.

I have to remember that people here ask questions and seek answers. I, on the other hand, solve problems. This means that there will be time where solving the problem doesn't answer the question, and I'm not being asked to solve the problem. I do this in real space, every day. People ask questions, and it is my job to be able to determine when I need to answer, and when I need to overlook and solve the underlying problems. I have to remember that here, on the net, it is only my place to answer. It kills me sometimes to let people continue with their problems, just for the sake of giving them an answer that is technically within guidelines, but that's MY problem.